beta-carotene and Migraine-Disorders

To evaluate, in a prospective design, whether migraine is an independent risk factor for subsequent stroke.. Evaluated as part of the Physicians' Health Study, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of aspirin and beta-carotene in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer begun in 1982. The aspirin component of the study was terminated in 1988, with average follow-up of 60.2 months.. Conducted by mail among male physicians throughout the United States.. A total of 22,071 US male physicians aged 40 to 84 years in 1982 with no prior history of cancer or cardiovascular diseases who were enrolled in the Physicians' Health Study.. Participants were randomized to receive 325 mg of aspirin or aspirin placebo every other day and to receive 50 mg of beta-carotene or placebo on alternate days.. The primary outcomes of the Physicians' Health Study were cardiovascular disease and cancer. Because stroke was a main outcome, this provided the opportunity to evaluate the association between migraine headaches and stroke.. Physicians reporting migraine (n = 1479) had significantly increased risks of subsequent total stroke and ischemic stroke compared with those not reporting migraine. After adjustment for age, aspirin and beta-carotene treatment assignment, and a number of cardiovascular risk factors, the relative risks were 1.84 (95% confidence interval, 1.06 to 3.20) for total stroke and 2.00 (95% confidence interval, 1.10 to 3.64) for ischemic stroke. There were too few hemorrhagic strokes in the study to evaluate this end point. No associations were seen between ordinary nonmigraine headache and subsequent stroke or between migraine and subsequent myocardial infarction or cardiovascular death.. These data raise the possibility that vascular events associated with migraine may also have causative importance in stroke but require confirmation in other studies specifically designed to evaluate this question.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Aspirin; beta Carotene; Cardiovascular Diseases; Carotenoids; Cerebrovascular Disorders; Double-Blind Method; Health Surveys; Humans; Middle Aged; Migraine Disorders; Physicians; Placebos; Prospective Studies; Risk Factors

Non-ionic contrast media (CM) can induce tissue kidney injury via activation of phagocytosis and oxidative stress, although the mechanisms of injury via neutrophils are not clear. We investigated the effects of CM on oxidative stress and Ca²⁺ concentrations in serum and neutrophils of humans. Ten migraine patients were used in the study. Serum and neutrophil samples from patients' peripheral blood were obtained before (control) and 30 min after non-ionic (iopromide) CM injection. The neutrophils were incubated with non specific transient receptor potential 2 (TRPM2) channel blocker, 2-aminoethoxydiphenyl borate (2-APB), and voltage gated Ca²⁺ channel blockers, verapamil plus diltiazem. Serum and neutrophil lipid peroxidation, apoptosis and intracellular Ca²⁺ concentrations levels were higher in the CM group than in controls. The neutrophilic reduced glutathione (GSH) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) levels as well as serum vitamin E and β-carotene concentrations were lower in the CM group than in controls. Neutrophil lipid peroxidation levels were lower in the CM+2-APB and CM+verapamil-diltiazem groups than in the CM group, although GSH, GSH-Px and intracellular Ca²⁺ values increased in the CM+2-APB and CM+verapamil-diltiazem groups. However, caspase-3, caspase-9, vitamin A and vitamin C values were unaltered by CM treatment. In conclusion, we observed that CM induced oxidative stress and Ca²⁺ influx by decreasing vitamin E, β-carotene and Ca²⁺ release levels in human serum and neutrophils. However, we observed protective effects of Ca²⁺ channel blockers on Ca²⁺ influx in neutrophils.

Topics: Adult; Apoptosis; beta Carotene; Boron Compounds; Calcium; Calcium Channel Blockers; Caspases; Cells, Cultured; Contrast Media; Diltiazem; Female; Glutathione; Glutathione Peroxidase; Humans; Iohexol; Ion Transport; Lipid Peroxidation; Male; Middle Aged; Migraine Disorders; Neutrophils; Oxidative Stress; TRPM Cation Channels; Verapamil; Vitamin E